Anna Crop Top

Hi knitters and friends! I'm blessed with sisters who are supportive and encouraging of my knitting endeavors, to the point that they now recognize the best souvenir to bring me from whichever place they travel to is “yarn”. I’m immensely grateful to them for their thoughtfulness as I get great joy from trying new brands of yarn that I am not familiar with. The yarn that I was gifted with this time was from a Japanese brand, with a rather beautiful texture, and its thread has a nice palette of colors mixed with an earthy beige base. 

From the start, my mind was set on using this yarn for a simple design, which - in my opinion - is the best way to show the beauty of its color sequence. So, after several trials I came up with this crop top that is knitted from side to side, with a knit and purl only pattern. It’s a rather straightforward, knitted-in one-piece pattern, however, I hesitate to tag it as an easy level project due to the cast on and bind off steps when knitting the back and front parts. Otherwise, it is really easy to make and looks great when worn as you can see. My youngest has laid claim on it, and in return, agreed to model it for us all to see. I hope you give it a try and let me know what you think about it. 

Overview:

• Skill level: Intermediate.
• Instructions style: written pattern.
• Yarn weight: #4/ medium/ worsted.
• Available sizes: this top is available in four sizes for adults: XS/S, M/L, XL/2XL, and 3XL/4XL (see detailed measurements below).

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Materials:

• Yarn: Daiso Mix Cake, 100% acrylic, 2.82 oz (80 g), 135.6 yards (124 m), in the color beige "41": 5 (5, 6, 6) skeins.
• Knitting needles, size US 10 (6 mm). 
• Tapestry needle.

Sizes and measurements:

Size	Chest-bust measurements	Waist measurements
XS/S	34"- 36" (86- 92 cm)	26"- 28" (66- 70 cm)
M/L	38"- 40" (96- 100 cm)	29"- 31" (74- 78 cm)
XL/2XL	42"- 44" (107- 112 cm)	32"- 35.5" (82- 90 cm)
3XL/4XL	46"- 48" (117- 122 cm)	37"- 39" (94- 99 cm)

Yardage: 

• Size XS/S: 560- 570 yards (510- 520 m), approx.
• Size M/L: 625- 635 yards (570- 580 m), approx. 
• Size XL/2XL: 700- 710 yards (640- 650 m), approx.
• Size 3XL/4XL: 775- 785 yards (710- 720 m), approx.

Gauge: 14 sts and 18 rows = 4" x 4" (10 cm x 10 cm) in stockinette stitch.

Knitting Terms:

• st: stitch.
• sts: stitches.
• k: knit.
• p: purl.
• k2tog: knit 2 sts together.
• ssk: slip, slip, knit the slipped sts together through back loops.
• m1R: make one st increase right wise.

Instructions:

Note: this top is knitted in one piece, from side to side (left sleeve to right sleeve) rather than top down or bottom up. 

Left sleeve:

Cast on 51 (55, 59, 65) sts, work as follows:

Row 1: k 1, p 1, repeat to last st, k 1.

Row 2: p the p sts and k the k sts.

Repeat row 2 twice more, then work as follows:

Row 3 (right side): p 18 (20, 22, 25) sts, (p 1, k 1) seven times, p to end.

Repeat row 2 until sleeve measures [20.5", 19.3", 18", 17.3" (52, 49, 46, 44) cm] from casting on.

Back And front increasing rows:

Row 4: repeat row 2, at the end of the row cast on 6 (6, 7, 7) sts. 

Repeat row 4 five more times. (87, 91, 101, 107 sts)

Row 5: repeat row 2, at the end of the row, cast on 8 sts for all sizes, then work next row as follows:

Row 6: (p 1, k 1) four times, repeat row 2, at the end of the row, cast on 8 sts. (103, 107, 117, 123 sts) Work next row as follows:

Row 7: (k 1, p 1) four times, repeat row 2 for the rest of sts.

Repeat row 2 sixteen (twenty, twenty-four, twenty-eight) times, ending wrong side row.

Back:

Row 8: (k 1, p 1) four times, p 36 (38, 43, 46) sts, (p 1, k 1) four time, turn. [(52, 54, 59, 62) sts]

Pass the remaining sts through a piece of yarn and secure it. These sts will be the front of the top and will be worked on separately later. 

Keep on working the back: repeat row 2 forty-one (forty-three, forty-five, forty-seven). Don't cut yarn. Pass the sts of the back through a piece of yarn and secure it.

Front:

Pass the front sts to a needle. Join yarn that matches the color of the row on the needle (the first row of the top's front). I had to cut some yarn from the cake I was working with to make sure the color sequence and the thickness of each stripe matches that of the back as much as possible. Work as follows:

Pick up the last st from the first row of the back. Now you have 52 (54, 59, 62) sts for the front.

Front neckline shaping:

Row 9: (k 1, p 1) three times, ssk, p (36, 38, 43, 46) sts, (p 1, k 1) four time,

Row 10: repeat row 2.  

Repeat rows 9 and 10 three (three, four, five) more times. [48 (50, 54, 56) sts]

Repeat row 2 twenty-six (twenty-eight, twenty-six, twenty-four) times, then work as follows:

Row 11: (k 1, p 1) three times, k 1, m1R purl-wise, p to last 8 sts, (p 1, k 1) four times.

Row 12: repeat row 2.

Repeat rows 11 and 12 three (three, four, five) more times. Cut yarn. [52 (54, 59, 62) sts]

Joining the back and the front:

Pass the back sts and the front sts to one needle, starting from the first st of the last row of the back, then work as follows:

Row 13: (k 1, p 1) four times, p 37 (39, 44, 47) sts, (k 1, p 1) three times, k the last st of the back and the first st of the front together, (p 1, k 1) three times, p (36, 38, 43, 46), (p 1, k 1) four times. [103 (107, 117, 123) sts]

Repeat row 2 sixteen (twenty, twenty-four, twenty-eight) times.

Back and front decreasing rows:

Row 14: cast off 8 sts, then repeat row 2 once.

Repeat row 14 once more.

Row 15: cast off 6 (6, 7, 7) sts, then repeat row 2 once.

Repeat row 15 five more times. [51 (55, 59, 65) sts]

Right sleeve:

Repeat row 2 until sleeve measures 19.5" (18.3", 17", 16.3") [49.5 (46.5, 43.5, 41.5) cm], then repeat row 1 once. Repeat row 2 three times. Cast off all sts.

Fold the piece in half lengthwise and sew the seams of the sleeves and sides together. Weave in loose ends.

Lastly, feel free to leave a comment if you have any questions or find something confusing in the pattern.

Happy crocheting/knitting! follow me on Instagram @wiams_crafts and Twitter @wiamscrafts to see my upcoming projects.